What Zack Never Does
by Lodylodylody
Summary: Out at sea on the S.S. Tipton, Zack and London talk to each other about how much they miss Maddie. But their conversation takes a turn that neither of them expected. Takes place shortly after the "Maddie on Deck" episode.
1. Chapter 1

It was a beautiful evening out at sea. On the deck of the _S.S. Tipton_ many passengers were enjoying the warm tropical breezes as they gazed up at the countless stars that twinkled in the clear night sky. But one young man was finding little enjoyment in the pleasant scenery. Zack Martin was leaning heavily against a guard rail with his thoughts focused entirely on one subject.

Maddie.

It had only been a few days since Maddie Fitzpatrick had left the ship. Her vacation onboard had certainly been eventful, but far too short for Zack's taste. He missed her terribly. The girl of his dreams. The girl he'd been in love with since he was twelve years old.

The girl he'd finally been able to kiss.

Well, technically, she'd kissed him first...and the circumstances hadn't been ideal at the time, as Zack had been in the midst of a ridiculous contest against the spoiled brat Prince of the tiny, obscure country where the ship had been temporarily docked. But the bizareness of the situation didn't matter now. What mattered was that Zack had acted as Maddie's knight in shinning armor, and she'd given him a kiss to inspire him on to victory.

And later, back on the ship, they'd kissed again under far better circumstances.

Everything was different now...and yet in some ways nothing had changed. Yes, Maddie had finally responded to Zack's advances. They'd kissed, they'd cuddled...she'd flirted with him just as much as he had with her, but they hadn't taken any time to talk about what it all meant.

Now, she was back in Boston and Zack was out at sea, where he was destined to stay until the school year ended.

_Was this just a one time thing for her?_ he thought. _A vacation fling? No, she wouldn't be that way with me...not when she knows how I've always felt about her. _

* * *

As it happened, Zack wasn't the only person on the ship who was thinking about Maddie that night. London Tipton missed her best friend. The heiress had enjoyed Maddie's visit to the ship but it had proven to have an unexpected drawback. After being able to spend time with her friend again, London missed Maddie more than ever now that her vacation had ended.

_I should just pay for her to come live on the ship full time_, the heiress thought. _Oh, but then she might feel like a charity case. Hmm...maybe, I could ask Daddy to give her a job working on the ship. _

While London pondered possible ways to get Maddie back onboard, she decided to take a stroll on deck. Almost immediately, she found herself crossing paths with Zack.

"Hey London," he greeted her quietly.

"Hey," she answered in an equally subdued tone. "You seem a little down."

"I was just thinking about Maddie," he replied.

"Me too."

The two young people were silent after that as they looked out over the ocean. Finally, they both spoke at once.

"I miss her," they said in unison. Then they looked at one another and smiled.

"At least you finally had some luck with her," London said. "You should be happy about that."

"I am," Zack admitted. "But...I...I'm not sure what's going to happen now."

London looked at him with a puzzled expression.

"We didn't talk about the future," Zack explained. "And when we said goodbye, I thought it was awkward. I mean, we spent all this time together on the ship but she never said anything about seeing me again."

"Why didn't you ask her? You could have brought it up."

Zack shrugged. "I guess I was nervous. I was enjoying the way things were going and didn't want to mess anything up." He shook his head. I'm an idiot."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," London said in a supportive tone. "You can call her and talk about it, right?"

"Yeah...but it would have been better if we'd talked face to face while she was here."

London studied Zack's expression closely. "You really love her, don't you?"

"Duh," he answered. "Haven't you been paying attention to me for the past four years?"

"Yeah, I have. And it's always been confusing to me."

"What do you mean? What's confusing?"

"Well, you always talk about how Maddie is your dream girl. And you've hit on her a lot. But at the same time you've hit on all these other girls. Like hundreds. And you've had plenty of dates." London folded her arms across her chest as she finished. "You've turned into quite a player."

"That's what you think of me?" Zack said, a bit distressed. "Does Maddie think that too?"

"I don't know. She's never talked to me about it...but I'm sure she's seen the same thing I have."

"But I'm not a player," Zack protested. "Maddie's always been the one for me."

"Then why all the other girls?"

Zack paused and started to look embarrassed. He mumbled something quietly.

"What was that?" London asked. "I couldn't hear you."

"I said, they were practice."

"Practice?"

"Practice for Maddie," Zack admitted. "I wanted to learn how to be the kind of guy that could sweep Maddie off her feet."

"So you were using all those other girls," London said pointedly.

"Don't make it sound like that. I mean, it's not like I was leading anyone on. The dates I had were just about having a good time. The girls all knew that."

"And you never led any of them on?"

"I swear," Zack said seriously. "Hey, do you remember Ella? She and I dated for almost two months."

London searched her memory. She hadn't gotten to know most of the girls that Zack had dated, but then again, there weren't that many girls that had gone out with Zack for as long as Ella had.

"I think I remember her," she answered. "Curly dark hair. Really pretty. Taller than you."

"That's her. Anyway, she and I dated for awhile. We had some good times. But it got to the point where things could've turned serious...so I told her we should stop dating."

"You what?"

"I told her the truth," Zack explained. "That I liked her a lot and she was a great girl...but that my heart belonged to Maddie."

"How'd she take it?"

"Very well," he answered with a smile. "I was ready for her to be angry, but she told me that she appreciated my honesty and wished me luck with Maddie. We've stayed good friends ever since."

"Wow, Ella's a really understanding girl," London said.

"And I'm an honest guy. I've been just as truthful with any girl I've ever dated," Zack said earnestly. "So do you still think I'm a player?"

London considered the matter. "I don't know. It's good that you're honest. But there have been so many girls that you've hit on."

"Oh come on," Zack said. "It really hasn't been that many."

"Please, you've hit on every pretty girl you've ever seen."

"I have not!"

The two friends started to argue about just how many girls Zack had hit on. Unfortunately for Zack, London was able to list many examples to prove her point.

"Face it," she said in conclusion. "There's not one attractive girl you know that you haven't made a pass at."

"Not one?" Zack asked meekly.

"Nope, not..." London paused as a thought struck her. "Wait, there has been one."

Zack smiled in triumph at London's statement. But his smile faded as he saw the troubled expression on his friend's face.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Zack," she said in a hurt tone. "How come you've never hit on me?"

* * *

**To be continued...**


	2. Chapter 2

"Well, answer me," London said impatiently. "Why haven't you ever hit on me?"

Zack felt flustered as he tried to think of a response. "We've just always been friends."

"Don't you think I'm attractive?" London asked.

Zack let out a dismissive laugh. "That's a ridiculous question. You're a total babe. _People_ magazine just put you on their 'Fifty Most Beautiful People on the Planet' list."

"Don't bring that up," London pouted. "I'm still mad they didn't put me as number one."

"My point is...you're very attractive. I've never thought otherwise."

"Then how come you've never hit on me? Not once in all the time I've known you."

Zack paused again. unsure of what he should say. "Why is it so important to you? If I had ever asked, would you have gone out with me?"

"No," she answered quickly. "I don't think of you that way."

"And, uh...I don't think of you that way either. That's all."

"But why not? What's different about me from all the other girls that you do ask out."

Zack started to pace. "It's just different."

The look on London's face made it clear that she wasn't satisfied with that answer.

"Do you think there's something wrong with me?" she asked.

"Of course not," Zack answered. "I mean, sure you have your quirks...but who doesn't? There's nothing wrong with you."

So why haven't you ever asked me out? Or even flirted with me?"

"You know what it is?" Zack said as a flash of inspiration lit up in his eyes. "You intimidate me. Yeah, that's it."

"I do?"

"Of course you do," he continued with a satisfied smile. "You're rich. You're famous. There's no way a guy like me could ever ask out a girl like you."

London mulled this over. The answer seemed to make sense, and truth be told, it did appeal to her ego. But there was something about it that seemed off.

"Zack," she said. "Do you remember back in Boston when I had the Cheetah Girls as guests for my web show?"

"Of course," he answered. Meeting the gorgeous female pop trio was not something he'd ever forget.

"And do you remember hitting on each one of them?"

"Um...yes, I vaguely recall that," he replied nervously.

"So you're not too intimidated to ask out three famous pop singers, but you are too intimidated by me?"

"Dang it," Zack said. "Why'd you have to pick now to be all analytical and stuff?"

"And why aren't you telling me the truth?" London stamped her feet in frustration.

"Because I...just don't want to," he snapped in exasperation.

London frowned. "Fine. You don't have to tell me. In fact, you don't have to talk to me ever again." With that, she turned and stormed back to her cabin.

"Great," Zack muttered. "Just great."

* * *

A short time later Zack was knocking at London's door. Her roommate Bailey answered.

"Hi Zack," she said.

"Hey," he replied. "Is London in there?"

"Yes," she answered as she stepped out into the hall. "And she told me that if you came by that she didn't want to see you. So...what happened?"

Zack sighed. "She asked me something that I didn't want to answer. And now her feelings are hurt."

"What did she ask you? And why didn't you want to answer?"

"It's complicated. She and I were talking about how I hit on lots of girls, then she started wondering why I never hit on her. She feels insulted because she's the only girl I never flirt with."

Bailey shook her head. "That's what this is all about?"

"Yeah, I know it sounds stupid. But I don't want London to be upset."

"Well, she shouldn't be. This is the 21st century and women shouldn't define themselves by the way men react to them."

Zack raised an eyebrow. "You still working on that research paper about feminism?"

Bailey smiled sheepishly. "I guess it shows, huh? But seriously London shouldn't be upset. You never flirt with me, and I don't take it as an insult."

"Right," Zack agreed. "See, you understand that I could have a perfectly valid reason for not hitting on you, and it doesn't mean I don't find you attractive."

"Exactly. You probably just don't want to complicate our friendship. That's reasonable."

"Well, I was thinking about the fact that my brother's in love with you, but your reason is good too."

Bailey stared wide-eyed at Zack. "What did you say?"

Zack's face went pale as he realized what he'd accidentally blurted out.

"Cody's in love with me?"

"Yes, alright!" Zack exclaimed in frustration. "Cody's in love with you. He's going to kill me when he finds out I let it slip, but there it is. I can't believe you hadn't figured it out yourself already."

Bailey leaned back against the hallway wall, a stunned look on her face.

"Are you alright?" Zack asked.

"I'm going to go talk to Cody," she replied, still wearing the same stunned expression as she walked off.

"Oh man," Zack sighed. He wasn't sure if he'd just done a very bad thing or a very good one. Either way, first he had to smooth things over with London. He knocked on her door.

When London opened the door and saw Zack she gave him a hostile glare. "I don't want to talk to you."

"Fine, I don't need you to talk," he said as squeezed past her into the cabin. "Just listen and I'll tell you why I never flirt with you."

The heiress put her hands on her hips and continued to glare.

"I didn't want to tell you this," he explained. "But I don't want you mad at me. Remember I said that every girl I hit on is really just practice for Maddie?"

London nodded.

"And remember that every girl I've gone out with has just been for fun? That I could never be in a serious relationship with anyone but Maddie?"

Again the heiress nodded.

"That's why I never hit on you, London. Because if I had, and you had responded..." Zack stopped and took a deep breath. "I love Maddie. She's the one I want to be with."

London's expression softened as she watched how emotional her friend was getting.

"Every girl I've dated, I've been able to walk away from before it got serious." He paused and looked down at the floor, embarrassed. "I...don't know if I could walk away from you."

London let the meaning of is words sink in. Then she stepped towards him and gently put a hand on his shoulder. "Oh, Zack. That's the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me."

"I love Maddie," he repeated.

"I know you do," she replied, and then pulled him into a hug. "Thank you for telling me the truth."

Sensing that things were going to be alright between them, Zack relaxed into the hug. It was a relief to finally confess the secret attraction he'd long felt for London.

"You should call Maddie soon," the heiress finally said when she released the hug.

"I'm going to. But first I've got to make sure Cody isn't going to kill me."

"Why would he do that?"

Zack then explained how he had told Bailey about Cody's feelings for her. London's only response was to gasp dramatically.

"Want to go with me and see what the fallout is?" Zack asked.

London nodded and the pair made their way towards Cody's cabin, however they didn't have to reach that destination to discover how Cody and Bailey were doing. They caught sight of the two outside on the main deck near the swimming pool...engaged in a very steamy kiss.

"I don't think he's going to kill you," London told Zack with a sly smile.

Zack smiled back.

* * *

**The End.**

**_author's note:_** _This is my first new story in a long time and I hope it's not too bad. It was a different writing experience for me, because I had no idea where it was going to end up when I started. I just knew I wanted to try a story that focused on Zack. It's also the first non Cody/London story I've ever done. (Gasp!) Anyway, hopefully I've shaken off any writer's rust by working on this tale, and my next story (which I've already started) will be better. Please review. _


End file.
